Poetry For Dummies

[Pages:17]Poetry for Dummies

Karlene McGowen Pershing Middle School

INTRODUCTION

I must admit that I am no expert when it comes to poetry. I feel intimidated at times when I am asked to give a scholarly interpretation of a complicated poem. My comfort zone lies in simple, fun, rhyming poetry. One objective in the reading curriculum I teach is to introduce poetry to our students and provide guidance for them in how to interpret, analyze, and write poetry. It is as intimidating for me as the students.

From this Creative Writing seminar I wish to create a curriculum unit in which an introduction to poetry is covered. The goal of this unit is to provide simple and clear ways to bring poetry into the classroom. Since I teach sixth grade, I dont expect the students to be able to write or analyze poetry that is unduly complicated. I would, however, like to introduce them to ways of analyzing poetry and interpreting lines. I would also like the students to attempt writing some poetry following the guidelines and concepts taught in the unit. The students will read independently and orally many different types of poems. I hope to also provide resources for students to be able to interpret these poems. Finally, they will write some poetry they are comfortable with.

This unit is good for my students because my task is to introduce a variety of literary genres to the students. Middle school is really a time for them to become independent readers and find what they are most interested in reading. Poetry may be the undiscovered genre for them.

WHAT WILL THIS UNIT TEACH?

The unit will teach poetry in oral and written form. The foundation of the unit will come from a series of books called Poetry for Young People. This series includes poetry from famous poets whose poems are tailored to young people. Some of the poets include Emily Dickinson, Carl Sandburg, Walt Whitman, William Carlos William, Edgar Allen Poe, and Robert Frost. I like these books because they are fully illustrated and easy to read. In addition to these books, we will use some other author compilations from poets who write for children, such as Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky. We will also use some compilations from authors who dont necessarily write for children, but whose poems can sometimes be used for children, such as Langston Hughes and Nikki Giovanni.

Introducing poetry and reading poetry is just the first step. We will lead into an analysis of poetry, looking at specific terms and concepts like simile, metaphor, rhyme, and mood. We will look at various poetic forms and learn the guidelines to follow. Then we will write original poetry using the concepts we have learned.

WHY IS THE TOPIC IMPORTANT?

Poetry is an entire genre of literature. It is, in my opinion, also the most challenging genre. Historical fiction, realistic fiction, mystery and the like are easily interpreted and mostly straight forward. Poetry isnt so. There is so much thought process to poetry that interpretations can vary among readers. It can be intimidating to attempt to analyze a piece of poetry. Hopefully this unit

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will do its part to break down any anxiety when attempting to tackle poetry. I certainly will have to overcome my anxiety in order to write the unit.

Why are people turned off by poetry? I believe its because we like to have structure and finality to things. Poetry gives us neither. No two poems are the same and most poems leave the reader to think about some open-ended question or situation. It is so free and unstructured that its difficult for some readers, me included. Perhaps if we look at it knowing it is intimidating, we can take baby steps to conquer it.

Even more intimidating is writing original poetry. So, of course, well have to do that in this unit as well. Whats the fun of being a reading teacher if you cant torture the students with poetry? Seriously, once the hill is halfway conquered, the rest is easily attainable.

HOW WILL I TEACH THIS UNIT?

I will read several pieces of work to the students. I will also give them a few poems to read silently. I will ask them to choose the poem they were most drawn to. They will write a quick response as to why they were drawn to that poem. The class will then be divided into groups, each group having chosen the same poem. The students will discuss within that group why each was drawn to the same poem. Im sure the answers will vary and have perhaps some overlap. That will be the catalyst to our discussion of poetry. The poems I plan on using include the following titles: "Smart" by Shel Silverstein (35), "My First Best Friend" by Jack Prelutsky (It's Raining, 14), "2nd rapp" by Nikki Giovanni (ego-tripping, 37), "Cat Speak" by Bobbi Katz (Janeczko, Dirty Laundry, 28), "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes (Langston Hughes Poems, 24), and "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe (15). I believe that this group of poems has a wide variety of form, subject, and length. This will provide a good range of poetry from which the students can choose. You may choose different poems depending on the abilities of your students.

We will raise the questions, "What defines a poem?", "What makes a poem effective?", "Why does an author choose to write poetry over a short story, or other form of story telling?" I expect the initial reactions to be slow in coming. However, I think that recognizing the fact that each student within the group chose the same poem, gives the students something to work with. There must be some characteristic that all these students were drawn to or enjoyed. That is where we will begin our thought process of the qualities of a good poem. Of course it will be subjective, and thats fine. My goal is to get the students to think about poetry. They should be critically analyzing text for the purpose of explaining the pros and cons of the work as well as the pros and cons of the genre as a whole.

After introducing poetry in this way, we will begin our lessons. I will teach similes and metaphors, mood, and rhyme. After these concepts are mastered, I will go into teaching various poetic forms. This is where the students will begin to write original poetry. Having taught these poetic forms at the end of this school year, I can tell you that the students ate it up. They were excited each day about what new form they would learn, and they couldnt wait to grab a partner and begin writing. I hope the same effect is seen in your classroom.

SIMILES AND METAPHORS

We will now look at similes and metaphors and how they contribute to poetry. The definition of both terms can be found in the appendix of this unit. Similes compare two unlike things using the words "like" or "as." A metaphor compares two unlike things by say one thing is another thing.

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Read the poem "Im nobody! Who are you?" by Emily Dickinson:

Im nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too? Then theres a pair of us-dont tell! Theyd banish us, you know.

How dreary to be somebody! How public, like a frog To tell your name the livelong day To an admiring bog! (12)

See if the students can identify the simile in this poem. What is being compared here? The simile compares frog and public. The author is showing her disgust at the possibility of having everyone know you. The same way that everyone knows a frog. In this instance she is in favor of leading a private, simple life.

A poem that contains two similes is "From a Railway Carriage" by Robert Louis Stevenson. The similes have been highlighted in bold:

Faster than fairies, faster than witches, Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches; And charging along like troops in a battle, All through the meadows the horses and cattle: All of the sights of the hill and the plain Fly as thick as driving rain; And ever again, in the wink of an eye, Painted stations whistle by.

Here is a child who clambers and scrambles, All by himself and gathering brambles; Here is a tramp who stands and gazes; And there is the green for stringing the daisies! Here is a cart run away in the road Lumping along with a man and a load; And here is a mill, and there is a river: Each a glimpse and gone forever! (2)

The two similes are "And charging along like troops in a battle" and "Fly as thick as driving rain." The first line is referring to the speed of the train. The author is revealing all the things that he sees through the window of this railway carriage. The words "charging along" give the feel of continuous movement as well as power. There is power in the numbers of a military troop and this power transcends to the gusto of the railway train. The second simile refers to the vision of the passing hills and plains. The reader can imagine the thick grass of the hill and plain speeding by in one blur. Instead of individual grass leaves, it forms into one solid mass of green sight. Just like thick heavy rain looses the individualness of each drop, so do the blades of grass.

These are just two examples of poems in which I found simile. As a challenge to the students, you might have them look through poetry books and find similes and explain what they mean. As the students begin to write poetry in the latter part of the lesson, you might assign one of the poems to contain at least one simile. The more repetition and exposure they have, the better they will understand this concept, and it will soon become part of their own writing tools.

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I have found that metaphor is more difficult to identify. In poetry the metaphor might take place over the entire poem not just in one verse. It takes a little more experience to identify a proper metaphor compared to a simile. Review the terminology with the students for clarification.

As for metaphor Ill use the poem "Bat" by John Malone at the Virtual School for the Gifted. Here the metaphor is directly stated in the first line. This poem should help students directly see how a metaphor works:

My son is a bat. His eyes blink when darkness comes. His body stirs with life. His limbs gorge with blood as he sets out through the cave of night his roof the stars the moon a big white eye watching. Attracted by the false lights he mingles with his batty friends weaving in and out of nightclubs endless parties each others places till sensing the sudden ebb of darkness he flutters home a cloaked Dracula to the hollow of his room where he will sleep all day.

Another poem is "mushroom" by Valerie Worth (102). Read the poem and ask the students what they can hear is being compared, remembering that a metaphor is a direct comparison of two things without the words "like" or "as." Hopefully they will see that the mushroom is being compared to a dim ghost. The author is making a direct comparison saying the mushroom is a dim ghost.

MOOD

For students to understand mood they need to read poems that have a powerful feeling attached to them. The mood is what the reader feels while reading. Ask the students if they have ever read a story and felt an overwhelming emotion that they couldnt explain. An author can bring out in us a varied set of emotions such as sadness, anger, joy, or surprise. The best way to explain mood in my opinion is to ask student to recall the feeling they had the first time they heard a ghost story. Ask them to share those feelings. Explain to the students that this is mood. It is how they, the reader or listener, felt while a story was being read or told.

Good poets evoke strong moods from their writing that readers cant deny. Mood is a good concept to teach using poetry because it is right to the point. Once they understand the concept of mood, it can be carried into lessons with short stories and novels. One poem to look at is "A Sphinx" by Carl Sandburg:

Close-mouthed you sat five thousand years and never let out a whisper, Processions came by, marchers, asking questions you answered with gray eyes never

blinking, shut lips never talking. Not one croak of anything you know has come from your cat crouch of ages. I am one of those who know all you know and I keep my questions: I know the answers

you hold. (13)

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This poem brings out a feeling of mystery. The reader cant help but feel intrigued by wondering what the answers are that the writer speaks about. "I know the answers you hold" (Sandburg 13) makes the reader want to know these answers and secrets. Ask the students what mood they felt while you read them this poem.

Another poem is "O Captain! My Captain!" by Walt Whitman:

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, The ship has weatherd every rack, the prize we sought is won, The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting, While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;

But O heart! heart! heart! O the bleeding drops of red, Where on the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up-for you the flag is flung-for you the bugle trills, For you bouquets and ribbond wreaths-for you the shores a-crowding, For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;

Here Captain! dear father! This arm beneath your head!

It is some dream that on the deck, Youve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still, My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will, The ship is achord safe and sound, its voyage closed and done, From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;

Exult O shores, and ring O bells! But I with mournful treat, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead. (38)

This poem has the reader feeling a mood of sadness at the loss of the beloved captain. The author really expresses his confusion of not knowing what to do now that he has realized his leader is dead on the deck. The reader feels sorrow and sadness for the author. We want to help this mate, but we too are helpless.

You can present the previous two poems to the class and have them discuss or write about the mood they felt. You may also choose to use different poems that you enjoy.

RHYME

Not all poetry has to rhyme, but when it does, it is great for read-alouds. Poetry is meant to be read aloud, and rhyming poetry is much more interesting and fun. Some great rhyming poets for children are Jack Prelutsky and Shel Silverstein. They each have numerous compilations from which to choose. Teaching the students to recognize a rhyming pattern is important because it causes them to look at the poem differently. Also, if they can understand rhyme patterns, then when they are assigned to write a rhyming poem, they will be able to follow the guidelines that go along with the assignment.

Well start with patterns. Explain to students that when we look at the rhyming pattern of a poem we label it with "a, b, c." These letters refer to the end words on each line. All "as" rhyme

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and so on. A basic pattern would be aabbccdd. A good example would be "Sick" by Shel Silverstein:

"I cannot go to school today," Said little Peggy Ann McKay. "I have the measles and the mumps, A gash, a rash and purple bumps. My mouth is wet, my throat is dry, Im going blind in my right eye. My tonsils are as big as rocks, Ive counted sixteen chicken pox And theres one more-thats seventeen, And dont you think my face looks green? My leg is cut, my eyes are blueIt might be instamatic flu. I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke, Im sure that my left leg is brokeMy hip hurts when I move my chin, My belly buttons caving in, My back is wrenched, my ankles sprained, My ,,pendix pains each time it rains. My nose is cold, my toes are numb, I have a sliver in my thumb. My neck is stiff, my voice is weak, I hardly whisper when I speak. My tongue is filling up my mouth, I think my hair is falling out, My elbows bent, my spine aint straight, My temperature is one-o-eight. My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear, There is a hole inside my ear. I have a hangnail, and my heart is-what? Whats that? Whats that you say? You say today is...Saturday? Gbye, Im going out to play!" (58)

With this poem every two lines end in a rhyming word. However, the rhyme does not repeat throughout the poem. Each stanza of two lines stands alone in its rhyme. This poem has short verses so it is a pleasure to hear read aloud. The students can really appreciate the rhythm as well as the rhyme.

Another example of a rhyming pattern would be "abcbdefe". An example would be "The Underwater Wibbles" by Jack Prelutsky:

The Underwater Wibbles dine exclusively on cheese, they keep it in containers which they bind about their knees, they often chew on Cheddar which they slice into a dish, and gorge on Gorgonzola to the wonder of the fish.

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The Underwater Wibbles wiggle blithely through the sea, munching merrily on Muenster, grated Feta, bits of Brie, passing porpoises seem puzzled, stolid octopuses stare, as the Wibbles nibble Gouda, Provolone, Camembert.

The Underwater Wibbles frolic gaily off the coast, eating melted Mozzerella served on soggy crusts of toast, Wibbles gobble Appenzeller as they execute their dives, oh, the Underwater Wibbles live extraordinary lives. (The New Kid on the Block, 16)

As an independent assignment give students several different poems and see if they can figure out the rhyming pattern. Some examples would be "Ma! Dont Throw That Shirt Out" by Jack Prelutsky. Another great poem to use is "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost (21).

POETIC FORMS

In this section we will concentrate on various poetic forms. Each form has specific rules it must follow to classify as a form. These forms are good to introduce and teach to the students because it gives them a sense of how broad poetry can be. A handout of the poetic forms and definitions is helpful for the students. When I taught these forms to the students I allowed them to choose a partner with whom to write an original poem. The students wrote a poem following the guidelines of each poetic form. At the end of the unit the students chose the two favorite poems they wrote and rewrote them on plain white paper with illustrations if chosen. I then took these poems and copied them and bound them so each student received a book of poetry written by his or her classmates. They absolutely loved it. This might be a good long term project for them to work on piece by piece.

I have pulled my information on poetic form from a wonderful book titled Teachers and Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms. I have found it to be one of the most helpful books in writing this curriculum unit. The poetic forms I have included below are just a few of the many, many forms that are described in the book. I would recommend that you get a copy of this book for teaching this unit and also to have in your personal collection, as it is quite helpful in all aspects of poetry. I see it as a dictionary of poetry forms. Another helpful book is A Kick in the Head, containing poetry selected by Paul Janeczko. The Handbook is a collegiate academic manual whereas this book is more adolescent friendly. It is meant for a young person to read it and learn various poetic forms. The poetry examples in this book are more suited for children. However, there are a significantly fewer number of forms taught in this book.

Acrostic (uh-CROSS-tic)

The basic acrostic is a poem in which the first letter of each line forms a word or phrase when read vertically. A double acrostic is a form in which the first letter of the line and the last letter of the line form a word or phrase when read vertically. These poems are a fun challenge for the students to create. A simple way to start is to write the word or phrase vertically. Then fill in the words and lines of the poem. This will present a challenge to some students, but overall each student will find that it is a challenge worth accepting. An example of a double acrostic follows.

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The first and last letters have been capitalized for easier identification. This example comes from The Teachers and Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms:

Blues Poem

Many times I Yelled across the cosmoS Not knowing to whoM And/or what everlasting top bananA Men had sought in faR EternitY. (5)

A blues poem is just what it says, a poem in the form of the blues. Typically these poems are about bad times, grief or loss. However, they are also about rising up and having a strong spirit. The blues originated in Africa but have been in America since the early 1900s. Southern slaves sang "field hollers" as they worked, which is a sort of singing talk. Introducing a blues poem to a sixth grader can be a bit challenging because we as adults tend to think that a young child has no basis from which to draw a depressing situation. However, they have most likely lost a loved one, lost a pet, gotten a bad grade or had a fight with a friend. These are situations from which a child can draw from to write a blues poem. The most prolific blues poem writer is Langston Hughes. Although much of his work is not suitable for the classroom, he does have some that can be used. There are such an enormous number of poems from which to choose. The idea is to give the students the feel and idea of what a blues poem is. One of my favorite poems of his is "Free Man," which is more about the strong spirit than the low times:

You can catch the wind, You can catch the sea, But you cant, pretty mama, Ever catch me.

You can tame a rabbit, Even tame a bear, But youll never, pretty mama, Keep me caged up here. (Collected Poems, 247)

I include another example here to help associate the Blues Poem to a sixth-grade student. This is titled "Back to School Blues" by Bobbi Katz:

Just wiggling my toes in my brand new shoes Guess Ive got a case of the back to school blues. Shiny new notebook with nothing inside it Feeling kinda scared and trying hard to hide it. Ive got 3 sharp pencils I never used before And a teacher I dont know behind a classroom door. Maybe shes a nice one. Maybe shes bad news. Im just a wiggling and a jiggling to the back to school blues. (Janeczko, A Kick in the Head, 50)

Calligram (CAL-ih-gram)

This is a fun poem to teach and write because a calligram poem is written in a shape significant to the meaning of the poem. The restrictions of this unit cant allow me to demonstrate a calligram poem here; however, I can describe an example. A writer can choose to write a poem about his or her love of the game of basketball. All the essential descriptions and verbs associated with basketball would be included. In addition the poem would be written in a spiral circle or

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